July 6th, 2010

I-15 travel options in a box

The Express Pass, a transponder that attaches to your windshield, will be available July 20.

Soon, a new pay-as-you-go system will allow drivers to use I-15 Express Lanes only as needed.

Traveling to an important event or getting to work on time is about to get easier. UDOT is introducing an new electronic system that will allow drivers to pay for Express Lane Use on an as-needed basis.

Here’s how to participate:

Single drivers who wish to drive in the Express Lanes need to obtain a small transponder box called an Express Pass. Electronic equipment on I-15 will work with the Express Pass to charge drivers for Express Lane Use.

Early adapters of the new system will be rewarded; the first 2000 Express Passes are free!

Only single drivers need to pay for Express Lane use. “If you’re carpooling, you don’t need to buy a transponder,” says Catherine

The Express Lanes website has an instructive video shows how the new Express Pass works.

The Express Pass approach is “all about getting people where they need to go,” says Catherine. Road users who choose to get an Express Pass will have more travel options, Catherine explains, because “you only pay for what you use.”

System wide benefits

“Better use of all lanes is the goal of the project,” says Catherine. When more people use the Express Lanes, travel delay is reduced in the other lanes, improving travel for everyone on I-15 along the Wasatch Front.